CONWAY (AP) — Merchants and shoppers have been encouraged to examine their money after a recent surge of counterfeit bill circulation in central Arkansas.

The Log Cabin Democrat reported many counterfeit bills have changed hands and been passed successfully in Conway throughout the past few days.

A Conway detective says fake bills are fairly easy to spot through close examination. He says most of the counterfeit money has been printed on office paper, while real money is printed on plant-based paper. But some were small bills that have been bleached and reprinted as larger bills.

Police are collecting counterfeit bills as evidence. The detective says the U.S. Secret Service has been made aware of the current problem in Conway.